New Delhi, Dec 2 || The Delhi High Court on Monday agreed to examine a plea filed by senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia against the trial court’s decision taking cognisance of the prosecution complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the alleged liquor policy scam case.
A bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri issued notice and sought response from the federal anti-money laundering agency in the matter.
In his petition, Sisodia contended that the trial court took cognisance of the alleged offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) without any prior sanction having been obtained by the ED for prosecution.
The plea added that the trial court should have not taken cognisance of ED's prosecution complaint without sanction since he held a public office at the time of the commission of the alleged money laundering offence.
Senior advocate Vikram Chaudhari, appearing on Sisodia’s behalf, cited former Union Minister P. Chidambaram’s case where trial court proceedings were stayed in the alleged Aircel-Maxis money laundering case for lack of sanction.
In a brief hearing, the Justice Ohri-led Bench remarked that in the absence of sanction for prosecution, the trial cannot commence as per the apex court ruling in the Bibhu Prasad Acharya case.